Muffled sounds were the first to breach the darkness surrounding the blonde fox-vessel. To Naruto, it sounded like he had his head underwater while everyone else was on the shore. Next came the unwelcome sense of pain throughout his body, fire though his veins and ice covering his skin. It felt like an eternity before the pain ebbed away, leaving a pleasant numbness in its place. Naruto's senses managed to penetrate the dark wall around him, telling him that someone was holding onto his hand. Another eternity passed before the noises around him became clear enough to hear snatches of individual voices.
"…only Naruto…dense enough…"
Sasuke?
"…number one knuckle head…"
Kakashi?
"…troublesome…"
Shikamaru without question.
Naruto felt the hand grasping his tighten his grip and fought to return the squeeze but failed. The sounds from the outside world gave him some idea of day and night but the hand never left his.
Eventually the cycle of night and day managed to pierce the void, the world becoming a repeating series of light and shadow. His eyes seemed to be glued shut but he managed to force them open just enough to see though the cage of his eyelashes. The world seemed to be out of focus to Naruto as he caught glimpses of the outside world, guessing who the blurs were from their voices. As with the sounds, the images sharpened and blob-like silhouettes became people shaped silhouettes. Naruto managed to turn his eyes, staring though his eyelashes at the figure sitting at his bedside. He knew it was Hinata, even without seeing her face.
Naruto's first contact with the world was a groan. His limited field of vision was instantly obscured by the silhouettes of anyone in earshot. Naruto felt his eyelid pulled back and a bright light was shone into his eye, prompting another groan.
"Welcome back to the land of the living," Tsunade told him as she helped him sit up.
"How do you feel?" Hinata asked.
"Like Akamaru's chew toy," Naruto replied.
Tsunade started checking Naruto's vitals as the others continued talking.
"Any idea what happened to me?"
Sakura's face hardened, "Danzo used a rare plant to poison you."
"I'm going to flatten him," Naruto growled.
"You're a little late for that," Sakura told him, "Tsunade and Sasuke got there first."
"What did you do to Danzo?" Naruto asked then wished he hadn't as Sasuke and Tsunade's faces morphed into sinister grins.
"Tsunade beat the hell out of him…" Sasuke said.
"…followed by three days of torture by Sasuke," Tsunade added, "which left him somewhat mentally handicapped."
"In the end we made him stand and told him to start walking until his feet bled, then keep walking."
Naruto failed to suppress a shudder.
"I dare say he'll turn up somewhere…eventually," Tsunade said evilly.
